Another huge thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter and to all the people following the story. It's been wonderful to read your responses and encouragement. This is the 2nd to last chapter of the story and also the longest. If you have delicate temperaments, you might want to jump ship now. For everyone else ... enjoy.
Still set in-between "Salvage" and "Beneath."
Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice. If I did, this would have happened already.
CHAPTER 3
February 18th, 2016 22:02 EST – Gotham
"Yeah Dad, I'll remember," Barbara said into the phone as she zipped up her suit.
"Don't stay up too late. You have your class tomorrow," her dad said. She could hear the sirens going off in the background of the phone and the same sirens softly echoing into her studio apartment from the outside.
"Dad, I'm in college," she sat on her bed and held the phone to her shoulder while she put on her boots, "You don't have to tell me I have class. And I'll just be studying tonight."
Studying for a class that doesn't exist … one of three imaginary classes to hide her actual busy schedule.
"Well, you need your sleep, too."
"Dad," she said tersely while pulling out her cape and cowl from the drawer, "I'm fine. I'm good. I'm peachy. And you sound like you're busy so go be a hero, OK? Um, by the way, where are you?"
"La Salle and Monroe. Fifth Bank got hit … but don't worry about me. Just study and go to bed."
She gave him her love and hung up the phone so she could finally put her cowl on. Facing away from the window, she adjusted her cape and looked at how in the dark the bright lights of the city hit the opposite wall like a spotlight … until there was a silhouette.
TAP TAP TAP.
As if she didn't already know who was tapping on the glass. Dick, in full Nightwing gear, perched on her fire escape like he had so many times, both here and back at her dad's place. Even when he was dating Zatanna, Dick would visit her window on her nights off or they'd come back after patrolling together – just hours of DVDs or video games or comfortable silence. Unlike the awkward fest that was happening at the moment.
"Nightwing," she said after opening the frosted window. "I didn't know you were back in town."
He ignored her comment, ignored the formality in her voice as he leaned down and got a good look at her. "You're in your suit."
Her eyes narrowed. "Nothing gets past you, boy detective. I'm going on patrol with Tim."
"Tim said you've been on duty for three nights straight. Keep this up and you're going to wear yourself out. Make yourself vulnerable."
It was lightly snowing and there was a definite chill to the air, but there was no way Barbara was going to shiver and show weakness in front of Dick. "Actually," she said grabbing her gauntlets, "Batgirl hasn't been out for a few days. Now Batman was out for the past two days since the other Batman had to skip town." She pointed to the wrap she used to tape down her chest and the voice modifier on her desk. "Someone has to keep up appearances."
"I don't want to see you get hurt, Babs. The – the team can't have you hurt."
She adjusted her gloves. "Doesn't matter."
"What do you mean it doesn't matter? You're being irresponsible."
She didn't respond, didn't look up and didn't want to admit that he was a little bit right. She also didn't want to admit that he looked gorgeous against the light of her window.
"You need to get rest for tomorrow's mission!" he continued.
"I'm restless tonight." I'm angry and hurt and confused and I just don't want to think about you, Dick Grayson. "I want to get out. Besides, Tim needs me."
"I need you!" he said a little too loudly. It made her jump. "I mean, I need to talk to you. Please hold off for a few minutes."
She stared him down, evaluating her choices. He bit his lip and she cursed herself for liking it.
Finally, Babs put her index finger to the side of her cowl with her headset. "Robin, I … might be late getting back into the city."
"Everything OK?" the headset lightly crackled in her ear.
"Yeah, just start without me and I'll try to meet up with you later. You'll want to get to La Salle and Monroe – bank robbery."
She gestured for Dick to come in so she could close the window. He sat on the very edge of her bed and rubbed the back of his neck – a nervous tick she had picked up on years ago.
She leaned back on the cold window to avoid getting close to him, but after a minute she was losing her patience, her butt was getting cold and frankly she refused to make this drama go on for any longer.
"Nightwing," she said, "You know I have a mission tomorrow and I need to either get out there with Robin right now or just go to bed. If you're worried our argument is going to hurt the team, don't." She looked down. "I'm not going to stay mad at you or hold a grudge if that's what this is about, so whatever you have to say can wait until—"
"I'm so sorry I yelled at you Babs," he stood up and took two big step towards her, "and I didn't mean any of it and I hate that I hurt our friendship and you don't deserve that and I didn't have time to get you anything because I just got back into town so this is an IOU for something amazing!" he said, pushing the torn sheet of loose leaf. It had scribbled on it the very literal "IOU something amazing."
Grayson, that's the least smooth you've ever been, he thought with loathing. It had sounded so much more elegant in his head. Dick was just hoping for any sort of positive response, but Babs stared down at the crumbled scrap of paper with bewilderment … until she burst out laughing.
In full armor, Batgirl was laughing so hard that she started to lose balance. Dick instinctually moved forward and held out his arm for her to grab. As he shifted his weight to steady her, he was just grateful to see her smile again.
"Boy Wonder," she sighed, putting a hand to his cheek, "You are such a dork! What the hell am I going to do with you?"
He tried to hide it, but even through her glove he relished her touch. Between the contact and her laughter, it was like coming home. He heard himself reply, "Don't I get to be Man Wonder now?"
Barbara laughed again and sat on the floor. She motioned to the spot next to her.
"Sit down already, Birdbrain."
"I really am sorry," he said as he dropped to the floor and shifted beside her, "There's no excuse for the way I snapped at you."
"It's OK," she said, patting his knee, "I said some things I regret, too."
"What are you talking about? You were just looking out for Artemis. What I did was out of line."
"No, it really wasn't," she sighed, "Look, I was frustrated by the Wally/Artemis thing, but that's not really why I was so angry. I've been your friend for a long time and after I learned your secret I thought that was going to be the end of us keeping secrets from each other for good. And I got mad at you the other night because I thought you didn't trust me. But..."
She looked up at the ceiling. "But that was childish of me. You are our leader and a really good one. I think," her voice wavered, "I thought we were closer, but maybe we're just teammates now. What I mean is, I would understand if you feel like I overstepped some boundaries during our fight and … before it."
It took him a few seconds to comprehend what she was saying. She thinks I don't –
"Barbara," he faced her, "You were the first person I talked to about my parents."
She blinked. "What?"
"I mean, there was Bruce, but he was there that night so I never had to tell him that story. And Wally only found out about it when I had already told him my secret identity. But I felt safe with you from the start. And quite honestly, I want you to call me out on my bullshit! The only other people who do are either in outer space or on the west coast! So please, please don't think I mistrusted you or that I don't count you as my closest friend."
Babs smiled thinly at him. "Sure, Dick."
But looking in her eyes, Dick knew she wasn't convinced. He took a deep breath and exhaled. There's no turning back now.
"I have to tell you something else. Something you might not like."
Her eyes became wary. Her body stiffened as if bracing for impact. "What is it?"
"What happened the day you became Batgirl?"
She raised her eyebrow. "Well, I went to meet you at the manor and I found –" "a bat," they said together.
"In the fireplace," Dick continued with his eyes closed facing straight ahead, "in Bruce's office. Struggling to get out. You opened the vent."
Pause. "How – how do you know that?"
He looked at her and enveloped her hand with his. "Because I was there. I planted the bat and opened the clock entrance so you had the chance to find it."
Another pause, but she didn't pull away her hand from his. That was a good sign.
"Why did you do that?"
"Because … when I became Robin, a couple weeks after I started school with you, one of my first harebrained ideas was that I wanted you to join me. Not just another kid – you specifically," He smiled as he remembered, "This was in my first week on the job, mind you, and Bruce said absolutely not. You were just a kid with no training and his friend's daughter and it was ridiculous. But I wasn't giving up.
"Babs … I asked you to try gymnastics because I wanted to train you myself. I was thrilled when I saw you loved the rush as much as I did and you were good at it. I wasn't surprised when you joined the gymnastics team. You picked it up so quickly and add that to your mean punch …" his thoughts wandered as a few friendly scuffles came into his mind, "You were meant to be Batgirl. And a couple times a year I would bring it up as casually as I could to Bruce, but he kept saying no."
She shook her head trying to make sense of the story. "So where does the bat trap come in?"
"Well, after we stopped Savage's mind control over the League, the adults panicked. They knew something big had happened or was coming or both, and even Bruce understood we needed all the help we could get. He actually asked me if I still believed you could do it. I said absolutely."
"Are you serious? He agreed just like that?"
"Well, he was set on giving you a test of will. You know how the great ninja feels about tests. You had to be thoughtful enough to help the bat, clever enough to find the entrance, bold enough to go down the steps, noble enough to not take the bribe and brave enough to ask him for the cowl.
I think he figured he'd get you on the last one but Babsie," he said, affectionately placing his hand on her cheek, "you passed with flying colors. I just never knew how to tell you. I didn't want you to feel like you didn't earn your place on the team."
His heart leapt when she closed her eyes and melted into his touch. Then those striking blue eyes shot open. "But why did you choose me? Just because I was your friend?"
"No, because," he stammered trying to find the right words. He stood up to find his bearings, "You were … you are one of the people I trust more than anyone else in the world. There's no one else I would want fighting by my side in Bruce's place and I hope you never forget that, B—"
She jumped up like a cheetah and pulled him into a very unexpected hug. He closed his eyes and told himself this wasn't crossing the line – there was no harm in enjoying her arms around his neck and the way her breath grazed his ear. There was no harm in relishing how small she felt in his arms or how she smelled like flowers.
But touching Babs – and having Babs touch him – was waking up his whole body. His whole body. He could feel himself getting hard and even wearing his suit they were too close for her not to notice. And yet he could see her bed out of the corner of his eye and the pull to kiss her, to really grab her and to take her was so much worse than the other night. He was aching and knew if he didn't leave right at that moment he wouldn't be able to control himself. I should leave, he thought. I should really leave.
But as he fought with himself to pull away, his lip just barely grazed her jaw line, making her let out a soft but very real moan. Yep, that did it.
She cursed herself for the slip, but with his breath on her jaw added to his arms around her … how could she not moan a little? He had moved his head so he was face-to-face with her and she was worried he'd be upset, but instead he pulled her a little tighter. OK, now she was confused because he was just a couple inches away from her face and he licked his lips and she involuntary mimicked him and he moved his hand down to her upper thigh and How the hell is this happening? her brain shouted at her. Unlike the other night that was filled with maybes and doubts, his intentions were now crystal clear … and somehow that scared her even more.
But Batgirl was never afraid, especially not afraid of her best friend. Her best friend who had his hands on her back and her thigh in just the right spots to light her belly on fire. Her best friend who looked like he was about to do something very, very stupid for both of them.
"This will ruin everything," she said in a whisper, hating herself for pulling away slightly and hating herself more for still holding onto his neck.
He pulled his head back a little. Dick knew she was right, more than she even knew it. She looked so lovely in the moonlight, but if he did what he wanted to do right now he would only hurt her by the end. But then she had to bite her lower lip and look up at him with her big blue eyes and –
"I don't care," he snarled before finally closing the gap and pressing his lips hard onto hers.
Holy crap, this is happening! Her best friend, her Nightwing, had just growled the sexiest three word sentence ever about her. His arms were on her. She was kissing him, she was finally kissing him and it could cost her everything. But as heat pooled in her abdomen, she didn't care either.
Dick pulled her so hard that her feet lifted off the ground. She gasped, opening her mouth to a kiss that electrified her whole body. With her eyes closed tight, his arms supporting her legs wrapped around his waist and his tongue slipping into her mouth, she was seeing stars and imagined the universe within Dick Grayson. She could get lost in him forever.
Dick's mind flashed as his senses lit up. She tasted and smelled so good, like honey and wildflowers. Her lips were so soft but her kisses were so firm and he couldn't figure out how she did that. Her tongue wasn't afraid to explore his mouth while his hands desperately groped her legs … Jesus, her legs. And then he thought of all the times they had come close to this point and always backed away. If I had known it would feel like this…
"Barbara, your lips are incredible," he muttered in between kisses, "And your eyes. And your legs. And -"
Frustrated, Babs took the next kiss to bite his lower lip, but that made him groaned, which made her groan, which made him growl. Dick moved to her neck, only to taste synthetic fabric on his tongue and lips. Opening his eyes, it only just hit him that her cowl covered a lot of her head. Definitely too covered.
"Babs," he said, "Your mask."
She nodded and kissed his neck right below his ear, making him shutter while she got her feet back on the ground. She pulled her mask off and tried to straighten her hair, but Dick gave her another scorching kiss, pushed her against the wall and pressed against her body. The force wasn't sweet and it wasn't gentle and it made her so fucking wet. She let out a cry (moan? scream?) and Dick kept that damn dangerous look on his face while he held her hips in place with his hands. She shivered in sweet anticipation and after brushing her jawline with his lips, Dick finally, finally he kissed her neck.
Jesus Christ! Her eyes rolled to the back of her head. Nerves on high alert, every touch from his mouth added to the fire in her belly. She wanted more of him, all of him and ran her hand through his hair to keep him in place on her skin. But then he got cheeky and moved his hand to her breast and on instinct – those years of training – Barbara gripped his hair hard and pulled him back. His head jerked back from the sheer force of her hands, he let out a hiss that turned into a long, agonizing moan.
But the Bird and the Bat locked eyes in understanding. They were non-meta crimefighters – they were used to having big purple bruises on their sides, split lips, stitches. They were used to living dangerously and pushing their bodies in ways their civilian friends couldn't possibly imagine. Her exes never got why she played rough, but Dick got it. Because they always knew they could both handle physical force … but now they each knew the other one liked it.
"Oh, you fucking goddess," he said, his head still tilted up by her grip and his eyes closed. Holding him in place, she stood on her tiptoes and feathered her lips against his. "Best … compliment … ever," she said in triumph.
She relaxed her grip, his eyes snapped open. He took back control, wedging her harder against the wall as if to challenge her. She let out a strained whine at the restored contact – his hot, wet mouth on her neck and his hands on waist and his very noticeable bulge pressing against her.
"Holy… fuh-uuuck, Grayson," she groaned, the words vibrating from her throat onto his lips as he eagerly lavished her skin with attention.
"This is such a stupid idea," Her voice was breathy and oh so sexy and her skin tasted divine and why didn't I do this sooner?
"I know," he said, "We're such idiots."
"I just can't believe we're doing this." She gasped when his thigh pressed against her core.
"Oh, I can," Dick smiled, still refusing to leave her neck, "I'm just sorry I didn't finish what we started the other day in the training room. Babsie, I've wanted to do this for a long, long time."
"Well, you sure took enough time to te-ellllll—ll me." Her words stumbled as Dick had discovered a perfect spot in the crook of her neck and just started sucking. Her knees buckled and she grabbed onto his forearms with all her might.
"What was that?" Dick asked smiling against her skin. "I didn't quite hear you there."
"Oh screw you!" Babs grabbed the back of his head to move him back to her lips. She adored those lips and how he tasted like peppermint and how his tongue seemed to know just what to do to drive her insane.
But he was still chuckling into her mouth, which just wouldn't do. That's why she kicked his legs underneath him so he fell on his back. Holding his wrists by his head with one hand, she lay on top of him, her other fingertips quickly traveled down to his crotch. She grabbed him hard enough for him to feel it through the suit's protection – her efforts were not in vain because he immediately gasped and groaned and got harder.
"Never troll a troller, Dick," she whispered with an evil smile just inches from his mouth. Sicko that she was, she couldn't help but savor how he groaned as she massaged him even though his suit. How he cursed as she blew on his neck. How he whimpered when she refused to kiss him even when he leaned up. How he was hard and it was all for her.
Finally, he was resigned to close his eyes, lean his head back and let her do her magic while he bit his lip in some desperate attempt at stability. Fat chance, she thought. But even biting his lip, he was grinning like a bastard.
"Sweetie, if this is the kind of results I get, what makes you think I'll ever stop trolling you?"
Out of equal parts frustration and horniness and stupid affection, she pulled herself back to his lips and just kept kissing him, kissing him as if the world would end any moment, kissing him as if making up for years of lost time. She ground her pelvis against him, enjoying feeling what she did to him while her own heat built more and more.
He whispered his encouragement, "Oh god, Barbara, that is – yeah right there, just – don—'t stop. Don't stop."
The next few moments (Minutes? Hours?) were a blur for Babs. Later she'd remember flashes of his mouth, his hands, his hips all touching her. She'd remembered both of them muttering at different times that they should stop, that they should slow down. She'd remembered the sound of her utility belt clanging as Dick threw it across the room, of him shaking when she undid his belt and her hand grazed his groin (maybe a little on purpose). She'd remembered standing up and taking off their suits piece by piece, Dick taking time to kiss and suck on each new exposed area of her skin (spending a little longer at her breasts), until he was just in his boxer briefs and his mask and she was just in her underwear.
With a wicked grin and more force than necessary, she ripped off his mask.
"Finally! Hello, Dick Grayson," Barbara said. She could finally see his eyes, his beautiful icy blue eyes … which were staring directing at her bare chest.
"Really, Dick?" She pulled him in with a kiss and brought both of them down to her bed. She kissed him, she ground against his hip and she finally just started groping at his back while she sucked on his neck. Dick was swept up in her, more than ready to take her, but he wanted to go slow – to make sure she enjoyed her first time. He held her firm and kissed down her neck to her panting chest to her torso to her core, but she stopped him by gripping his hair … hard.Oh man, she is so hot when she does that.
"No," she said through clenched teeth, "You're doing that next time. I need you in me now."
She said next time, he thought. Next time is good.
A condom came out of thin air (when did she have time to reach for that?) and she made quick work of the little clothing they had left. Her eagerness only made him harder, only made the animal in his chest fight harder to get out, but he still carefully rolled the condom on and eased himself into place on top of her. She moaned as he entered her and he trembled. Being inside her felt achingly good, but he forced himself to stay slow. Mind-numbingly slow. After a few moments of this slow ease-in, Barbara stopped cooing and raised her eyebrows.
"Really, Dick? I'm not a china doll."
"I know, sweetheart, but if we don't go slow this first time… ," he trailed off, not knowing how to end that sentence without getting embarrassed. Suddenly she got it.
"Dick, you do know I've done this before, right?"
He blinked. "Wait, really?"
"Yeah," she said as she squeezed his waist with thighs and turned them over so she was on top, giving him no time to think about just who got to be with her first, "So don't you dare hold back."
That was apparently all the approval Dick needed. He sat straight up so she was sitting in his lap, her breasts against his pecks. Hands on her hips, he supported her movements, which were firm but powerful. She undulated and ground hard against his pelvic bone while he sucked on her collar bone and trailed kisses up to her neck. He bucked a little against her and she moaned, relishing how good he felt inside her. At some point the kissing stopped and there was only the rhythm of their hips together, getting faster. Her desired built and the sound of his desperate panting brought her so close to the brink.
"Dick, I can't hold on!" she cried.
She was determined to hold on for longer, to make it last for him … but then he moved his hand down to her core.
"Do it, Babs," he grunted as he rubbed that bundle of nerves and bucked one more time. She gasped as pleasure exploded through her body. It was the most intense orgasm she had ever felt, even from herself – it was so intense she automatically pushed Dick's torso down hard on the bed and arched her back, reveling in wave after wave.
Eyes shut, Dick felt a chill as she pushed his back to the mattress. He was determined to hold back his release, but he still shuttered as muscles convulsed against his cock and she ran her fingertips down his bare chest. It shouldn't have been a surprised that when he looked up at her face, Dick was dumbstruck.
"You're … god, Barbara, do you even know?"
"Kno— know what?" she gasped. She was coming down from her orgasm, still panting when her eyes met his. City lights from the opposite window were cast on the bed, making the white lights of Gotham seem to glow around her. There was her and only her, his best friend and his partner, naked and on top of him and completely in heaven. He could help but reach up and cup her cheek.
"Do you even know how beautiful you really are?"
It was all in his eyes, his gorgeous blue eyes. Like all those years ago on the uneven bars, one look from him and she knew she could trust him with anything.
"Why don't you show me?" she smiled and leaned in.
With the biggest grin and one last scorching kiss, he flipped them over so he was on top. His pace was quicker this time, their hunger for each other growing as her hips moved in time. She clawed at his back, their bodies now rocking hard against the bed, the headboard hitting the wall over and over.
"Babs," he gasped, "We're going to put a hole in your wall."
"You can patch it," she clenched her teeth, "Just don't stop."
He closed his eyes tight, concentrating on pounding into her as hard and fast as possible because it felt so damn good. He couldn't imagine it getting any better… until she came again. Until she arched her back again. Until she screamed.
"RICHARD!"
Her orgasm rocked him and his mind went white as he hit his peak. It radiated through his entire body and yet somewhere though the haze, he realized Barbara had pulled his body down with her, hugging him and savoring how he trembled in the orgasmic bliss.